Thursday, July 17, 2014

Readers Speak: Kayla Says Welcome home LeBron

One of these
things is not like the other, right? I mean, if you had money and all the
power to pick a place to live for give or take the next 4 years of your life,
surely you’d pick the sun and beaches of Miami, right? Or maybe
you’d choose an iconic skyline in the city that doesn’t sleep, where crooners
and rappers pen love songs and new buildings seemingly go up every day.

Los Angeles,
the city of Angeles, home to stars and a fashion capital of the world. Sunny
skies and some of the best beaches America has to offer. Cleveland?
Well…it has character? No, there are no luxurious beaches. It is not a top ten
destination amongst vacationers or home to stars. The economy? Well they don’t
call this area of the country the Rust Belt for nothing. The weather is very
Midwestern. Gray skies and snow in the winter, hot and humid in the summer.
Cleveland and Northeastern Ohio aren’t a lot of things, but one thing it is –
is home.

Ohio is home
to tough, hardworking men and women who helped catapult America to the
forefront during the Industrial Age. Once the home to the Rockefeller family, it is currently the home to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. We offer world class health care
in the name of the Cleveland Clinic, the second largest performing arts center
in the United States, and an up and coming culinary destination, featured on
many television shows. Ohio is also home of Iron Chef Michael Symon. Northeast
Ohio is the birthplace of Halle Berry, Toni Morrison, Ruby Dee, Dorothy
Dandridge,Bobby Womack,
The Levert Family, and yes, LeBron James.

When LeBron
left Cleveland 4 years ago, it was a gut punch to fans. It was one thing to
leave, but the way he left to “Take his talents” to South Beach, was especially
hard to stomach. You see, we here in Ohio knew Lebron before he was introduced
to American as a high school junior basketball phenom. He was one of us- a tough, hardworking kid from a town that had
seen better days. We all knew his talent would take him to places we ourselves
had never seen, and perhaps would never go. When he was drafted by the Cleveland
Cavaliers in 2003 a new feeling had begun to creep over the region. An
unfamiliar feeling. A feeling we hadn’t had in now over 50 years. Hope.

Cleveland
hasn’t won a championship in 50 years. But beyond sports, Cleveland and
Northeast Ohio didn’t have much to feel hopeful for. When the steel mills began
to shut down and the economy was sent into a downward spiral, there wasn’t much
hope. People began to leave Northeast Ohio in droves. No one could blame them.
They had to do so in order to better their lives.

Those that
remained here struggled. Those who could helped out. We didn’t have much, but
we had each other. We were family and sports became a way for us to forget our
problems for a few hours and enjoy watching players represent the name on the
front of the jersey. Being a Cleveland sports fan wasn’t easy though. This is
the city of underdogs. Cleveland sports teams collectively haven’t won a
championship in the three major sports since 1964. There have been many
disastrous moments along the way: ‘The Drive’, ‘The Fumble’, ‘The Shot’, ‘The
Move’, and most recently ‘The Decision’, have all come to define Cleveland
sports misery. Finding a bright spot, a moment where we could get away from our
problems was becoming harder and harder to do.

When James
was drafted by the Cavaliers, the euphoria in the air was unlike anything I had
experienced as a Cleveland fan. Sure, we had the wonderful run by the Cleveland
Indians in the 90’s that set the city on fire with “Indians Fever”, but this
was different. A local kid, a Northeast Ohioan who we watched grow and become a
man amongst boys playing high school basketball right in our backyard was going
to lead Cleveland. He was finally going to rid us of 50 years of misery.
Someone who struggled just like us, someone who understood the importance of
family and loyalty, someone who “got us”, was finally going to lead us to
sports promise land. What a better way to end it.

As James led
the Cavaliers to franchise highs we had never seen before, a sense of pride
washed across Northeast Ohio. It was hard to ignore Cleveland and Ohio anymore.
We were the lead in on Sports Center, CNN and other national networks came to
town to cover the Cavs and what it meant for Cleveland. Movie stars and
entertainers began flocking to Cleveland to catch a game and ended up staying a
few days. New shops, bars, and restaurants began to pop up. Cleveland had
several wonderful ideas to re-invent itself drawn up – and in a way it felt
like a rebirth. A Cleveland renaissance.

And then it
happened. He was gone. In a way even he says he should have handled better. It
was like a sucker punch. The kid from Northeast Ohio, one of our own, someone
who knew our struggles had left for the sun and beaches of Miami.

I now
understand he had to leave. He had to do what was best for him and his family,
yes, but he also had to mature. We all did. When he left there was sadness,
anger, and confusion. How could one of our own turn his back on us? Perhaps the
best thing that grew out of this situation, maybe even unconsciously was we
were no longer going to let the world define us as “the mistake on the lake”.
We refused to be the joke of a national any longer. We were #HappyInCle. We may
have our faults and problems, we may never be a premiere vacation destination,
but this is home. This is Cleveland.

In four
years after you leave home you learn a lot about yourself and what’s most
important to you. We occasionally wondered while he was here if he “got it”.
Does he really understand us? Is he really one of us? While reading James' letter, I can finally say, unequivocally, he understands. He is one of us.
James' letter, a beautiful love note to Northeast Ohio highlights Midwestern
values like family, hard work, pride, and loyalty.

Outsiders
may never get us or why sports mean so much to us. We may not have beaches, the
sun may not shine 365 days a year, but its home. OUR home – imperfections and
all. I’m Kayla. I’m imperfect just like the area I hail from, but I wouldn’t
change a thing. I’m proud to say I’m from Northeast Ohio and I’m proud to have
James represent us. They say you can never come home. I say you’ve never been
to Northeast Ohio. You’re always welcomed.